A shared celebration of cultures

France's Ambassador to China Bertrand Lortholary says the China-France Year of Culture and Tourism is to demonstrate the fruitful achievements and vitality of cultural and people-to-people exchanges and highlight cooperation.

He hopes that these events will make the people in both countries know more about — and rediscover — each other's cultures and arouse interest in visiting each other's nation to experience travel attractions and cultural heritage in person.

On Jan 5, when the 40th International Ice and Snow Festival kicked off in Harbin, Heilongjiang province, the China-France Year of Culture and Tourism was also unveiled, with giant ice sculptures of the Temple of Heaven in Beijing and Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris, which will reopen at the end of the year after restoration, standing shoulder to shoulder at Harbin Ice and Snow World, a landmark theme park.

Chinese and French artists will work together to stage French composer Charles Gounod's five-act opera Romeo and Juliet at the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing from Jan 25 to 28.

A theater version of Les Miserables and popular musicals Notre-Dame de Paris, Don Juan and Mozart, l'Opera Rock will tour the country.

Solo exhibitions of French contemporary artists, such as sculptor Jean Cardot, a member of the French Academy of Fine Arts, installation artist Annette Messager and conceptual artist Bernar Venet, will be launched. And an augmented reality show will be leading the audience into an immersive voyage through the 850-year history of Notre-Dame, from its construction to the restoration after the catastrophic fire in 2019.